Why are Central Eastern and Southern Member States only now becoming active in EU asylum policies

Recent attempts to reform EU asylum policy have been characterised by sharp divisions between Southern European countries and states in Central and Eastern Europe over mandatory refugee quotas. Yet as Natascha Zaun explains, this stands in stark contrast to EU asylum debates prior to the 2015 asylum crisis, when both Central Eastern and Southern Member States largely remained silent. She argues the 2015 crisis made clear the redistributive implications of EU asylum policies and motivated these states to adopt stronger positions at the European level.